1. THE REGION’S MONTHLY NEWSPAPER FOR HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS & PHYSICIANS
MARCH 2016
BY DANIEL CASCIATO
In January, Nova Southeastern University (NSU)
appointed Johannes W. Vieweg, M.D., FACS, as
founding dean of NSU's College of Allopathic
Medicine. The new college hopes to welcome its first
class of medical students by fall of 2018, subject to
achieving accreditation. NSU will be the only
university in the Southeastern United States and the
first in Florida to house both an osteopathic medical
school and an allopathic medical school.
“Building a medical school is a bold move and
something really special so I was honored that [NSU]
President Dr. George Hanbury asked me to launch it,”
says Dr. Vieweg. “He’s a true visionary and with my
past experience and background, I know I can help tremendously.
Building a medical school from the ground up and shaping it in a way
that I feel a medical school should be shaped is something that is
extremely attractive and challenging at the same time.”
Dr. Vieweg joins NSU from the University of Florida (UF) in
Gainesville, where he served as the Wayne and Marti Huizenga Endowed
Research Scholar's Chair, director of the UF Prostate Disease Center and
chairman of the Florida Prostate Cancer Advisory Council. In 2006, Dr.
Vieweg joined UF as the inaugural chairman of the Department of
Urology. At the time, there were only two faculty members. In 2014, U.S.
News & World Report ranked the urology department 18th in the
nation—the state’s highest ranking in urology. Dr. Vieweg credited the
strong faculty with the department’s success. He hopes to replicate that
success with NSU’s new medical school.
“We will work with our health partner, Hospital Corporation of
America, to bring outstanding faculty down to South Florida,” says Dr.
Vieweg. “With this association, we have the ability to attract outstanding
faculty into our system and this quality will reflect in both education and
research.”
Located in Fort Lauderdale, NSU is world renowned for being a
dynamic research institution. Dr. Vieweg envisions research to be a strong
component of the College of Allopathic Medicine as well.
“One of the differentiating factors that will set our school apart is
academic research,” says Dr. Vieweg, who is a specialist in academic
research. “Involvement in research exposes you to medical problems that
you otherwise will never learn. Through our new curriculum, students
will be involved in independent research programs where they get to
make medical observations in the clinic and conduct their own
investigations while being mentored by faculty. It will be quite fascinating
for medical students to be involved in that type of research because it
gives them a different thinking and helps to train them to be our future
leaders of medicine.”
Another distinguishing factor of the new school is that the pre-clinical
component of education, which examines the theory of medicine, will be
condensed into one year. Typically, medical schools spend up to two years
conveying the theory of medicine. Dr. Vieweg thinks this is too long.
“Students want access to clinical practice and clinical exposure early on
and we are seeking to develop that into our new curriculum,” he says.
“This is complimentary to NSU’s osteopathic medical school which has a
strong community-based mission that we seek to augment
through our research and clinical training.
The new medical school coincides with NSU's additional
growth plans of opening a 215,000-square-foot Center for
Collaborative Research (CCR) this spring as well as the future
relocation of Plantation General Hospital to NSU's main
campus in Davie, Fla., by Hospital Corporation of America
East Florida. The hospital will serve the surrounding
community and eventually be a teaching and research facility
integrated with NSU's research centers and clinical trials.
“By partnering with Hospital Corporation of America, NSU
and the community, we can create a healthy environment and
a healthy economy in South Florida,” says Dr. Vieweg. “Aside
from clinical education, our key responsibility is to educate
Floridians more on how to live healthier, how to live longer
and how to live better. We’re building something really special in South
Florida and trying to help make it a healthier place for everyone.”
Dr. Vieweg is board certified by the American Board of Urology and
recently completed a five-year term as chair of the American Urological
Association's Research Council. He received his medical degree from the
Technical University of Munich, Germany in 1978. After relocating to the
United States, he spent three years as a post-doctoral research fellow at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and Duke
University in Durham, N.C. In 1999, he completed the Duke residency-
training program in urology and enjoyed a highly productive nine-year
tenure as vice chair for research in the Duke Department of Urology.
Much of Dr. Vieweg's career-long scientific activity has focused on the
investigation and clinical testing of genetically engineered tumor
vaccines, the discovery of universal tumor antigens and the modulation
of immunosuppressive T cells and myeloid cells. He also made significant
contributions to the biomedical sciences by discovering novel pathway-
targeted interventions and developing prediction models for therapeutic
response.
“I’ve always believed that it’s very important for an academic medical
professional to really understanding new scientific insights that transform
and build the future of medicine,” he says. “Medicine is evolving almost
on a daily basis. Being on the forefront of new discoveries and new
treatments that benefit patients is very important.”
Dr. Vieweg's more recent research interests are aligned with the field of
public health, prevention medicine, implementation science and
comparative effectiveness research, applied in academic and community-
based settings. His scientific work has received uninterrupted funding by
the National Institutes of Health since 1998 and is well documented in
more than 150 publications, books, commentaries and review articles.
Once the new College of Allopathic Medicine is officially accredited,
Dr. Vieweg says they can begin to enroll students. The first class will
entail 50 students, he adds.
“We’re interested in a diverse group of the best and brightest students
in South Florida and out of state so that they can master and thrive in this
challenging curriculum,” Dr. Vieweg says. “Bright students enjoy
challenges, being exposed to early access to clinical care and being
involved in research.”
For more information, visit www.nova.edu.
New Founding Dean of NSU College of Allopathic
Medicine Looking Forward to
Opportunities and Challenges
Dr. Johannes W. Vieweg
![THE REGION’S MONTHLY NEWSPAPER FOR HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS & PHYSICIANS
MARCH 2016
BY DANIEL CASCIATO
In January, Nova Southeastern University (NSU)
appointed Johannes W. Vieweg, M.D., FACS, as
founding dean of NSU's College of Allopathic
Medicine. The new college hopes to welcome its first
class of medical students by fall of 2018, subject to
achieving accreditation. NSU will be the only
university in the Southeastern United States and the
first in Florida to house both an osteopathic medical
school and an allopathic medical school.
“Building a medical school is a bold move and
something really special so I was honored that [NSU]
President Dr. George Hanbury asked me to launch it,”
says Dr. Vieweg. “He’s a true visionary and with my
past experience and background, I know I can help tremendously.
Building a medical school from the ground up and shaping it in a way
that I feel a medical school should be shaped is something that is
extremely attractive and challenging at the same time.”
Dr. Vieweg joins NSU from the University of Florida (UF) in
Gainesville, where he served as the Wayne and Marti Huizenga Endowed
Research Scholar's Chair, director of the UF Prostate Disease Center and
chairman of the Florida Prostate Cancer Advisory Council. In 2006, Dr.
Vieweg joined UF as the inaugural chairman of the Department of
Urology. At the time, there were only two faculty members. In 2014, U.S.
News & World Report ranked the urology department 18th in the
nation—the state’s highest ranking in urology. Dr. Vieweg credited the
strong faculty with the department’s success. He hopes to replicate that
success with NSU’s new medical school.
“We will work with our health partner, Hospital Corporation of
America, to bring outstanding faculty down to South Florida,” says Dr.
Vieweg. “With this association, we have the ability to attract outstanding
faculty into our system and this quality will reflect in both education and
research.”
Located in Fort Lauderdale, NSU is world renowned for being a
dynamic research institution. Dr. Vieweg envisions research to be a strong
component of the College of Allopathic Medicine as well.
“One of the differentiating factors that will set our school apart is
academic research,” says Dr. Vieweg, who is a specialist in academic
research. “Involvement in research exposes you to medical problems that
you otherwise will never learn. Through our new curriculum, students
will be involved in independent research programs where they get to
make medical observations in the clinic and conduct their own
investigations while being mentored by faculty. It will be quite fascinating
for medical students to be involved in that type of research because it
gives them a different thinking and helps to train them to be our future
leaders of medicine.”
Another distinguishing factor of the new school is that the pre-clinical
component of education, which examines the theory of medicine, will be
condensed into one year. Typically, medical schools spend up to two years
conveying the theory of medicine. Dr. Vieweg thinks this is too long.
“Students want access to clinical practice and clinical exposure early on
and we are seeking to develop that into our new curriculum,” he says.
“This is complimentary to NSU’s osteopathic medical school which has a
strong community-based mission that we seek to augment
through our research and clinical training.
The new medical school coincides with NSU's additional
growth plans of opening a 215,000-square-foot Center for
Collaborative Research (CCR) this spring as well as the future
relocation of Plantation General Hospital to NSU's main
campus in Davie, Fla., by Hospital Corporation of America
East Florida. The hospital will serve the surrounding
community and eventually be a teaching and research facility
integrated with NSU's research centers and clinical trials.
“By partnering with Hospital Corporation of America, NSU
and the community, we can create a healthy environment and
a healthy economy in South Florida,” says Dr. Vieweg. “Aside
from clinical education, our key responsibility is to educate
Floridians more on how to live healthier, how to live longer
and how to live better. We’re building something really special in South
Florida and trying to help make it a healthier place for everyone.”
Dr. Vieweg is board certified by the American Board of Urology and
recently completed a five-year term as chair of the American Urological
Association's Research Council. He received his medical degree from the
Technical University of Munich, Germany in 1978. After relocating to the
United States, he spent three years as a post-doctoral research fellow at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and Duke
University in Durham, N.C. In 1999, he completed the Duke residency-
training program in urology and enjoyed a highly productive nine-year
tenure as vice chair for research in the Duke Department of Urology.
Much of Dr. Vieweg's career-long scientific activity has focused on the
investigation and clinical testing of genetically engineered tumor
vaccines, the discovery of universal tumor antigens and the modulation
of immunosuppressive T cells and myeloid cells. He also made significant
contributions to the biomedical sciences by discovering novel pathway-
targeted interventions and developing prediction models for therapeutic
response.
“I’ve always believed that it’s very important for an academic medical
professional to really understanding new scientific insights that transform
and build the future of medicine,” he says. “Medicine is evolving almost
on a daily basis. Being on the forefront of new discoveries and new
treatments that benefit patients is very important.”
Dr. Vieweg's more recent research interests are aligned with the field of
public health, prevention medicine, implementation science and
comparative effectiveness research, applied in academic and community-
based settings. His scientific work has received uninterrupted funding by
the National Institutes of Health since 1998 and is well documented in
more than 150 publications, books, commentaries and review articles.
Once the new College of Allopathic Medicine is officially accredited,
Dr. Vieweg says they can begin to enroll students. The first class will
entail 50 students, he adds.
“We’re interested in a diverse group of the best and brightest students
in South Florida and out of state so that they can master and thrive in this
challenging curriculum,” Dr. Vieweg says. “Bright students enjoy
challenges, being exposed to early access to clinical care and being
involved in research.”
For more information, visit www.nova.edu.
New Founding Dean of NSU College of Allopathic
Medicine Looking Forward to
Opportunities and Challenges
Dr. Johannes W. Vieweg](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/c10ef922-c099-4474-8f7b-53cc24564465-160304120951/85/NOVAVIEWEGMAR16-1-320.jpg)
